KZN LEGISLATURE SPEAKER’S ANNOUNCEMENT FOR THE OFFICIAL OPENING OF THE LEGISLATURE AND THE STATE OF THE PROVINCE ADDRESS
STATEMENT BY THE SPEAKER OF KWAZULU-NATAL LEGISLATURE, MS NONTEMBEKO BOYCE, DURING A MEDIA BRIEFING TO ANNOUNCE THE STATE OF READINESS FOR THE OFFICIAL OPENING OF THE LEGISLATURE AND THE STATE OF THE PROVINCE ADDRESS
20 February 2023
Programme Director
The Deputy Speaker, Mr. Richard Themba Mthembu
The Secretary of the legislature, Ms. Nerusha Naidoo
Members of the media
We would like to start by thanking each one of you for responding so positively to our invitation to this morning’s press briefing wherein we seek to update you on key developments in the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature.
Ladies and gentlemen, over the past weeks, the leadership of the legislature has been conducting consultations with all key stakeholders regarding the Official Opening of the KZN Legislature as well as the State of the Province Address (SOPA).
Among the stakeholders were consulted were King Misuzulu kaZwelithini, the Premier of KwaZulu-Natal, Ms Nomusa Dube-Ncube and leaders of all political parties represented in the Legislature.
During our media briefing last year, we reported that, although over the years the official opening of the legislature, had been a two-legged occasion that commences with the address by His Majesty and culminates in the State of the Province Address (SOPA) by the Premier, His Majesty was not going to address the house pending the conclusion of government processes in respect of certification of the King.
We are happy to announce that following the Coronation of the King in October last year, we will commence with the Address by the Monarch which will be followed by the State of the Province.
In line with Standing Rule 10, of the Standing Rules of the KwaZulu-Natal Legislature, the Zulu Monarch will deliver His inaugural address on Thursday, 23 February and subsequently the Premier will deliver her State of the Province Address the following day, on Friday, 24 February 2023 at the Oval Cricket Stadium in Pietermaritzburg.
Members of the Media will recall that in the past, the KZN Legislature has made use of the Royal Showgrounds as a preferred venue for the King Address as well as SOPA. However, we are aware that this facility has been sold for a mixed use development and from 2024, it will no longer be available. We therefore felt it prudent that we must begin to cast our net wider in terms of the facilities within uMsunduzi that could host an event of this magnitude. We are therefore convinced that the Oval Cricket Stadium is one of the suitable venues that the Legislature can utilise until such time that the new legislature precinct comes into fruition.
May I advise members of the Media that the Kings Address and SOPA will be attended by 2500 people. The Official Opening will comprise of 1200 invited guests, 700 members of the public, 500 Amabutho, 100 members of Omama besiphithiphithi group and maidens.
We have taken a decision that the Address by His Majesty should be a vastly dignified and distinguished ceremony hence we have increased the number of attendees from 1000 last year to 2500 this year as we take advantage of the fact that the King will be delivering his maiden address and also recognising that the 2021 and 2022 Official opening has limited attendance due to Covid 19 restrictions. This move has been fully supported by political parties represented in the legislature.
We anticipate a dignified and colourful ceremony that posterity would be proud of with Amabutho and amakhosi receiving His Majesty before the formal programme.
The 1200 invited guests have been sourced from diverse sectors and different parts of the country including, the diplomatic corps, civil society, cultural groups, interfaith, the interfaith, the judiciary, NCOP delegates and former Members of the Legislature.
We are therefore confident that we will have a highly dignified and cost-effective inaugural address by His Majesty whom we regard as a source wisdom and many important issues ranging from development, social, economic and cultural in the province.
Ladies and gentlemen, let me I want to assure you that the Legislature is alive to the socio-economic challenges facing the country. To this end we have ensured that there are no frills that would characterize our opening. Only those amenities that are necessary for the event of this magnitude have been secured.
Ladies and gentlemen,
SOPA is critical in that it serves to set out the province’s key policy objectives and deliverables for the year. This is essential for the legislature to commence its oversight process for the year in that it can have a clear picture of the Executive’s plans and intentions for the year.
During SOPA, Honourable Premier Dube – Ncube will expand on practical steps to be taken by our government to address challenges faced by the province. The SOPA will, among other things focus on how the provincial government will deal with the effects of the recent floods and the July 2021 unrest which affected the lives of thousands of people and wrecked the economy.
This address by the Premier, follows President Cyril Ramaphosa’s address to the nation and serves as an opportunity for Members of the Legislature to consider the issues of accountability and oversee whether commitments of previous years have been achieved or are on track.
The proceedings for both the official opening and SOPA will be available live on all KwaZulu-Natal Legislature social media pages on reverse billing or data-free meaning members of the public can stream for free on youtube. This address is also available on our website and social media pages.
The State of the Province Address will be followed by the Provincial Budget which will also be followed by Budget Policy Speeches of all provincial governments, including the Legislature.
Among the highlights of our budget speech will be the achievements we have scored as the institution including the fact that we are currently sitting with two consecutive clean audits. This, ladies and gentlemen, shows that we are not only keeping a watchful eye on how government entities handle the public purse but we are also leading by example.
We are also proud that our institution was the first among its peers to effectively use digital platforms to run its business online with house sittings and administration meetings now being conducted online.
Our public participation programmes, sectoral engagements and oversight programmes continue to have positive impact on people’s lives. We therefore humbly request the media to continue supporting our activities such as the LGBTQI+ Symposium, Sex Work Symposium, International Women’s Day, the Interfaith Symposium, the Workers’ Parliament, the Youth Parliament, Women’s Parliament, Senior Citizens’ Parliament, TLTP, Disability Parliament, Young Women’s Symposium.
All the Programmes mentioned above will take place against the backdrop of the Legislature finalising its closeout report for the sixth term as we prepare for the 2024 Elections. As the serving leadership we want to believe that we have built on the solid foundation laid by those leaders who came before us. It is our conviction that when we hand over the baton to the seventh political administration, our contribution during this term will not go unnoticed.
I thank you
ISSUED BY THE KWAZULU-NATAL LEGISLATURE
For more information contact:
Nomusa Phungula
071 851 0085
